#BlackLivesMatter

Let me be real because THERE GOES my chill. Fuck off with your ‪#‎AllLivesMatter‬. If you're saying that, you don't UNDERSTAND ‪#‎BlackLivesMatter‬. You obviously have never suffered at the hand of systemic racism or apathy. You haven't lost a family member or friend to a system tilted against them from economics to education to the legal system intended to protect them.

"Some of my best friends are cops." I'm only being a little facetious. I do have good friends who are cops. Even they accept the ugly ass truth that being a police officer doesn't flip some switch in your head that turns off the racism you held before you put on the badge. A good cop leaves that shit at home. But there are exceptions. I think even #BlackLivesMatter folks will tell you these racist officers are the exception rather than the rule. BUT. We see it, we have the facts, the numbers that show, unfortunately, some cities' WHOLE FORCES are the exception. What's wrong with having a real conversation about it?

If you are or you know a woman whose allegation of sexual assault was met with "well, you're a whore"; if you're a gay man who's been beaten for that reason alone and met with "well, you were in this neighborhood with that lisp", a hispanic woman who got IDed and asked if you were an illegal FOR NO REASON, then you should understand better than anyone.

Y'all are right. Police officers have an IMPOSSIBLE job. I respect the hell out of all First Responders. It's hard. They put on a uniform every day that makes them a target in some neighborhoods and go out on the streets to uphold our laws. But as they are the epitome of our defense against crime, they also MUST be held to the HIGHEST standards and made accountable—and yes, moreso accountable than anyone because they ARE the law.

You're right. All lives DO matter. Cops lives matter. LGBT lives matter. Hispanic lives matter. Bus drivers' lives matter. And yes, white lives matter.

But America isn't turning a blind eye when a white kid gets shot by the cops, unless he's low income. Then, again, you should understand how the system is tilted against you and your family and demand accountability since we are ALL equal under the law. #BlackLivesMatter is a movement in which African Americans INSIST on their civil liberties, their rights, and their value as CITIZENS of our country be taken seriously, and that they don't have to fear for their children, ESPECIALLY AGAINST THOSE CHARGED WITH THEIR CHILDREN'S SAFETY. But it's also a movement for all of us, and a chance for us all to get it right and I'm SO fucking sad and disappointed in how many people's knee-jerk reaction is to lose their chill because they think they or a police officer they know/love are being called a racist. It's so much more than that.

Check yourself, because we already wrecked it.

[Original Post can be found on my FaceBook]